Turnabout Fake
by lilacbird
Summary: A mystery victim, a delirious client, a decisive witness, an unconscious detective and an old friend. Apollo thought this case was a dead-end, but could he end up digging up more than he expected? On hiatus; may be picked up again later.
1. Chapter 1

My computer is still broken, so I'm having to use… other methods of updating my work, eh heh heh

**--**

"Hello?"

"Hey. Remember me?"

"Who is this?"

"Ha ha! It _has _been a while. You don't recognise my voice?"

"W-Wait… You're… No way!"

"Ha ha! Yes way! I just called to say- I'm coming back."

"C-Coming… back? Why?"

"What's the problem? I just…"

--

'On November the eighteenth at eleven-thirty p.m., the body of a woman was found in the back seat of a late-night taxi. The cause of death- blood loss from a single stab wound to the chest. The car was found on one Larkspur Street, however a witness claimed to have observed the crime take place by the riverside, the driver then departing in the automobile. The suspect's name is Mr Del Irium, twenty-six. The victim's name is unknown as of yet…'

Apollo sighed and threw the case files down on the table and fluttering onto the floor like black and white butterflies. In his opinion, this case was a dead end. The only thing he had managed to find out about their mystery victim was that she was a female of about thirty years of age. The evidence was at a shocking low, and the client… don't even get him started on _him._ How on earth did he get himself into this mess? Oh, right. He hadn't.

Mr Wright had.

"Apollo, can I call in a favour?" Mr Wright had casually came out with just a few days earlier.

"What sort of favour?" Apollo had questioned warily.

"It's… a certain case." Mr Wright had answered. "As you know, I'm not a lawyer any more, so I thought…"

"You want me to take the case?" Apollo had said. "Why?"

"The defendant, Del Irium… He didn't do it." Mr Wright had answered plainly.

"How do you know?" Apollo had asked.

"I don't. I just… have a feeling that there's more to this case than meets the eye." Mr Wright had said. "Just… do this for me. Would you, Apollo?"

Curse Apollo's inability to utter the word 'No'! He would give anything to get out of this case. But… as he was unable to, he might as well do his job, and do it well. Heaving himself up out of his chair, he headed for the door of the Anything Agency.

"Where are you going, Polly?" Trucy piped up from her seat at the sofa, her eyes glued to the old television as she flicked aimlessly through the endless channels of nothingness.

"Check out the crime scene, talk to my client… I don't know, just something to get me away from those files!" Apollo answered.

Trucy pressed the 'Off' button on the remote, and after a few more tries television finally stopped blaring away to itself. "I'll come with you."

--

The gravelled road to the crime scene was as deserted as ever as Apollo and Trucy made their way along it. The road turned directly off of a busy main street where taking turns was dangerous, and its entrance was heavily shaded by huge ominous black trees, so there was little need for the garish yellow police tape that sealed off the whole area to the public. A river ran along the left side of the road, and across it was a footpath and cycling road where locals often strolled. The taxi in which the crime had occurred was not there, of course- it had been held up by a police officer only a little further down the main road, and had been taken in and was currently under forensic testing. All that remained as evidence that a car had ever been there was the brown smudges on the road which the car had left when it upturned the gravel as it drove away.

And crouched down beside the site of the crime was a certain white-coated detective, magnifying glass in hand and snackoos in pocket.

"Detective Skye!" Trucy called out, waving to get Ema's attention and bounding straight for the scene.

"Stop right where you are!" Ema bellowed threateningly, scrambling to her feet.

Apollo and Trucy stopped in their tracks. "What's the matter?"

"I am currently carrying out a very delicate, top-secret experiment- a single interruption could cause the entire system to malfunction!" Ema explained exasperatedly. She seemed to be in an even worse mood than usual.

"Detective-"

"_Please!"_ Ema shouted. The she sighed tiredly and her voice softened so that it almost sounded like she was begging. "_Please…_ be quiet, will you?"

"Um, Detective, are you ok? You don't look too well." Said Trucy with concern.

Now that Trucy mentioned it, Apollo realised, Ema really _didn't_ look well. At all. Come to think of it, she had been on working on this case non-stop from when it first came to light over a week ago. How many hours of good sleep had she gotten since then? Her skin was pasty white, her eyes were tired and circled with big black bag, her hair was matted and unwashed, swept messily into her usual ponytail. She looked small, thin, and drained in every meaning of the word.

"I'm _fine._" Ema insisted, rubbing her droopy eyes. "I've just got a bit of a headache, that's all."

"A-Are you sure? I mean, you don't _look_ fine…" Apollo said, taking a step towards her.

"Stay out of the crime scene!" Ema shrieked, frantically waving her arms. Then she held her head in her hands and gasped for breath, doubling over as if in pain.

Trucy looked at Apollo sceptically, both seriously doubting that Ema was even _close_ to fine.

"I saw that!" Ema snapped, recovering and putting her hands on her hips stubbornly. "Oh, so you think I should take a break, is that it? And let you poke around the scene while I'm away? Hmph! I'll have you know I-" She gasped again, her eyes rolling back in her head, and she stumbled, about to collapse.

"E-Ema!" Apollo rushed forward, and caught her by her shoulders, steadying her.

"Let go of me…" Ema muttered, regaining her balance and dusting herself down. Then her eyes widened and a horrified look took over her face.

"Ahhh! Get out! Get out of the crime scene! Out! Out!" She cried, trying to push Apollo away, but, in her weakened state, only ended up pushing herself backwards. "Get out of here! And don't come back!"

Apollo hurried back over to Trucy, dodging the snackoos Ema was hurling in his direction. The pair hesitated, looking back worriedly at the detective, but then turned to leave. No sooner had they turned their backs when a heavy 'thud' was heard behind them.

"Eek! Detective Skye!" Trucy screamed, rushing to the unconscious Ema's side and, lifting her torso off of the gravel, proceeded to shake her by the shoulders yelling "Wake up! Wake up!"

"D-Don't shake her!" Apollo shouted, panicking.

"Oh, sorry." Trucy said, promptly dropping Ema. She slumped back into a heap on the ground, her head making a dull 'crack' as it hit the road.

"Ahhh!" Apollo screamed, dashing over to Ema and inspecting her head for any signs of blood or injury.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Trucy apologised profusely, leaning over the lifeless body of the detective. "Is she… alive?" She whispered.

"O-Of course she is! Sh-She's just fainted… I think." Apollo looked around. "What should we do?"

"W-Well, there's a hospital just around the corner… What was it, 'The Johnson Clinic'?"

"How are we going to get her there?! I don't have a car, you know!" Apollo cried.

"It's not far… You could carry her." Trucy suggested.

"_Carry _her? She's twice me size!" Said Apollo indignantly.

"Oh, don't exaggerate!" Trucy snapped. "Perhaps… you could hold her top half and I could hold onto her bottom half and we could carry her like that?"

"O-Ok…"

--

Apollo's face burned as he and Trucy together hauled the unconscious Ema down the street. People were staring at them as they passed by in their cars- but such was to be expected. He knew they must've look quite a sight- a lawyer and a magician dragging a half-dead detective down the street, the test tubes clinking in her satchel. But it still made him uncomfortable.

"Holy hat!" Trucy puffed, adjusting her grip on Ema's ankles. "Detective Skye _really _ought to lay off the snackoos! What does she keep in that satchel, bricks?"

Apollo didn't reply, instead mumbling something about Evil Stares of Death drilling holes in his head.

"Ugh. This is _so_ unromantic." Trucy grunted, beads of sweat forming on he brow.

"Unroman- so dragging a dead woman down the street is supposed to be romantic now?" Apollo frowned.

"No, that's not what I mean!" Trucy insisted. "_You_ should be the one carrying her- preferably bridal style!"

"N-No way!" Apollo objected furiously. "I'd drop her, I know I would!"

"Hm, true." Trucy agreed. "Well, never mind that now, we're nearly there anyway."

--

When Ema came to she found herself lying on an uncomfortably hard sofa staring up at a white ceiling through blurred eyes, too-bright lights forming a frown on her forehead and the scent of several different chemicals burning her nostrils.

_Wait… This isn't my house! Wh-Where am I…?_

Then she remembered.

_Oh, right… I… passed out._

A familiar face drifted into view above her, a broad smile knitted from on ear to the other.

"Apollo, she's awake!" Trucy's voice blasted through her head like a marching band through a megaphone. Her skull ached horribly, and her mind felt fuzzy. Just what had happened to her while she had been asleep?

"Ema!" Apollo cried, his relieved face replacing Trucy's before her eyes. If she thought Trucy's voice was loud, nothing could've prepared her for the pure torture her poor ears had to endure just then.

"Oww…" Ema groaned and rubbed her head, upon which a suspicious lump had formed. "Please don't shout."

"Oh, sorry!" Apollo shouted, panicked. "Uh, I mean… sorry." He added in a whisper.

"Uhh… Where am I?" Ema asked. She felt like she was going to be sick.

"The hospital." Apollo said.

"Hm…" Ema moaned meekly, closing her heavy eyelids. Then she snapped them open, feeling instantly better. "The _hospital?!"_ She screeched in horror. Her hand shot out and grabbed Apollo by his tie, jerking his head down so that they were almost nose-to-nose. "You brought me to the _hospital?!"_

"I-I-I'm sorry! I-I didn't know what else to do!" Apollo yelped, trying to undo his tie which was tightening alarmingly around his neck as Ema puller harder and harder. "It-It was Trucy's idea!"

"Polly!" Trucy cried indignantly. Ema didn't seem to be listening to either of them.

"You _left _the _crime scene?!_" She yelled in disbelief, yanking on Apollo's tie furiously, the Fires of Hell dancing in her ocean green eyes.

"I-I-I'm sorry!" Apollo managed to choke out feebly, his hand desperately scrabbling at his throat, his face turning positively blue.

"Now you listen to me," Ema hissed threateningly. "When I get beck there, I expect _everything _to be _exactly _the way I left it. If even a _pebble_ is out of place, I swear I'll-"

"Hmm, Miss… Miss Skye, was it?" Apollo's skin was saved by Director Johnson walking into the waiting room. He had so _kindly _offered to carry out Ema's check-up himself. "I'm… Director Johnson. Hmm, yes."

"Director?" Ema said in awe, her eyes widening suspiciously at the mop of pink hair and toothless jaws. Her hand immediately released the blue tie it previously held, and Apollo collapsed onto the floor, spluttering and gasping for air.

"Director Hickfield!" Trucy cried delightedly. "What are you doing here?"

"Hmm? Oh, it's you, Trucy!" 'Johnson' grinned, showing his two rows of broken-zipper teeth. "Here? Hmm, yes, I… transferred clinics. Hmm, yes. And this lady here is… Miss Ema Skye, I presume?" He said, looking suggestively over at Ema, who was still sprawled out of the sofa, thoroughly confused.

"Yes, Doctor. She fainted earlier, could you check to see if she's ok?" Trucy smiled obliviously.

"Check? Oh, yes, I'll… 'check' her over very thoroughly for you, Trucy." 'Johnson' said, his fingers waving like some deranged octopus. "If you could step into my office, ma'am… Heh heh heh…"

Ema looked fearfully from side to side, then shakily got to her feet and reluctantly followed the 'Doctor' into his office.

--

Ema Skye stormed furiously out of the Johnson Clinic and down the road, with Apollo and Trucy close behind her, begging for forgiveness. They could practically _see_ the steam coming out of her ears, she was so mad.

"E-Ema! Please, wait! We didn't mean-" Apollo began.

"_You,_ Apollo Justice!" Ema turned immediately on her heel so that Apollo very nearly ran straight into her. "I have _never _been so _embarrassed _in my entire _life!_ First you drag me to the _hospital_ over a little fainting spell, leaving the crime scene _unattended,_ _then_ you thurt me into the care of a deranged old pervert," -who she wasn't even sure was a real doctor- "who _insists_ on examining me topless- and it turns out I was only 'overworked, hmm, yes'!"

"I'm sorry! P-Please don't hurt me!" Apollo begged.

"_Hurt _you? I'm going to _slaughter_ you, you little-" Ema took a sharp intake of air, raising her hand to her hurting chest.

"Ema… Maybe you should go home and lie down. W-We could call the precinct and tell them to put another detective on the case-" Apollo said carefully.

"No!" Ema cried. Her voice softened. "No, I… I'm fine. I just… need some rest." She finally admitted it.

"Should me and Trucy walk you home? If you faint again-"

"No, I'll… I get a cab." Ema said exhaustedly.

So that was how she ended up cramped into the back of a stale smelling public taxi on the way back to her apartment. Apollo had offered to pay for the cab, but Ema wasn't having any of it. He had already gone to the trouble of hauling her all the way to the hospital, she wasn't going to rob him as well. Trucy had called the Chief of Police and explained everything- he had been very nice about it, so she had said, and sounded very worried about Detective Skye.

"Oh, you mean Ema? She's ok, right pal? Hold on a sec, lemme talk to her! Another detective…? Oh, right, the crime scene! Sure, sure, I'll send another out right away! HEY, MEEKINS! YOUR CALL!"

"Hey, kid." Ema had droned just before the taxi drove away. "Here." She scribbled out a few lines on a scrap of paper, signing it at the bottom. She handed it to Apollo. "Take this. Go talk to your client. He's been in questioning long enough."

Apollo smiled. "Thanks, Ema."

"That's Detective Skye to you…" Ema muttered, her head flopping against the taxi window as she fell half-asleep. The driver looked at her, then at Apollo sympathetically.

"No worries, kids. I'll see she gets there in one piece." He assured Apollo and Trucy, who were casting concerned glances at each other. After all, their most recent murder had occurred inside a taxi just like this. But then, the driver seemed to be a sane, sensible man- the exact mirror of their very own Del Irium.

The cab sped away, leaving a trail of smoke billowing out behind it.

Apollo sighed and looked to Trucy.

"C'mon, Trucy. Better go and try to make sense of our client."

--

Apollo swallowed as the walking shock of red hair practically fell into the detention centre. Their client, Del Irium. A tall, stork-like young man, with several tattoos (each on bearing the name of a different woman) and a face completely hidden by a mop of untidy ginger hair. He was twenty-six, though Apollo suspected his mental age was much lower; and seemed to be permanently hallucinating.

"H-Hello, Mr Irium, do you remember me?" Apollo asked carefully.

"You? Oh yeah." Del waved a limp hand dismissively. "You're that Lawyer, right?"

"That's right." Apollo said.

"Yeah, well, you see, the thing is, I don't need a lawyer." Del said. "Already got one. Apollo Justice, I think he was called…"

"_I'm_ Apollo Justice!"

"Oh. Oh!" Del scratched his head, his grin only just visible beneath his shaggy hair. "So you are. So, what do you want with me?"

"I'm your lawyer!"

"Lawyer? I already got one."

"I _know!!"_

"Then what are you here for?" Del asked suspiciously.

Apollo face-palmed.

"I. Am. Your. Lawyer." He said very slowly and deliberately. "I. Am. Here. To Question. You. Do you understand?"

"Ok, I got it! You're my lawyer, and you're here to question me, right?" Del asked.

"Right." Apollo said through clenched teeth.

"Question me on what?"

"On _the murder!" _Apollo had to bite his tongue to stop himself from screaming. Trucy was shaking her head.

"What murder?"

"The murder you're on trial for!"

"So… I'm the murderer?"

"NO!! You're the _suspect!!"_

"Oh…" Del paused. "So… you're the murderer?"

"_NO,_ I'm the _lawyer!!"_

"Lawyer? Sorry, I already got one…"

--


	2. Chapter 2

Four hours later, Apollo and Trucy dragged themselves exhaustedly in The Wright Anything Agency, their hair limp, black rings under their eyes

Four hours later, Apollo and Trucy dragged themselves exhaustedly in The Wright Anything Agency, their hair limp, black rings under their eyes.

"Oh, hi," said Phoenix. "How did your conversation with your client go?"

His answer was a strangled groan and a stony glare.

--

The next day, Apollo and Trucy decided to go to criminal affairs to see if any information had come to light about their mystery victim (and maybe check on Ema while they were at it). Phoenix had written down directions for them, but apparently geography was his forte, as it took them almost two hours to work out his pathetic excuse for a map.

Upon their _eventual _arrival, they found the precinct almost completely empty, save a few police personnel flitting about here and there, and the Chief of Police sitting at his desk. He was a big guy, wearing a scruffy-looking trench coat and a moth-eaten tie. He seemed to be having a little trouble with his computer.

"What?! I said 'delete' not 'insert', you stupid thing!" He roared at the monitor in frustration.

"Maybe we should ask him if he knows where Detective Skye is." Trucy contemplated aloud.

"Good idea." Apollo agreed.

There was a pause.

"Well?! Are you going to ask him or what?!" Trucy asked accusingly.

"Me?! It was _your _idea!" Apollo said defensively. It seemed that neither of them had the courage to go face-to-face with the raging bull that occupied the chief's desk.

"You talked to him on the phone! You said he was _nice!" _Apollo whispered to Trucy, not wanted to attract attention.

"Well, that was then and this is now!" Trucy hissed back.

"Hey, you two!" The Chief of Police suddenly bellowed at the top of his lungs.

"Eep!" Apollo let out a yelp of surprise. "U-Us?" He asked nervously.

"Yeah, you kids. What d'ya want?" The Chief asked.

"W-W-Well, w-we're th-the defence for the recent m-murder case, a-and we were wondering i-if…" Apollo swallowed and Trucy elbowed him in the ribs.

"Grow some backbone, Polly!" She hissed,

"Hey, I don't see _you _leaping into action here!" Apollo hissed back.

"You're the defence, huh, pal? Hohoho! You got it rough! There's no _way _you're gonna win this time, pal! We got a decisive witness this time!" The Chief began to laugh heartily. Apollo and Trucy eyed each other nervously.

"W-Well, sir, we were wondering-"

"Hey, what's with this 'sir', pal?" The Chief cut in. "The name's Gumshoe. _Chief _Gumshoe- and you'd better not forget it!" He thumped his chest proudly, a huge grin spreading over his whiskered face.

Apollo was still uncertain, but Trucy seemed to relax a little, deciding that the Chief _was_ a good guy after all, despite his appearance.

"Chief Gumshoe, we came to see if you had dug up any new information on the victim. After all, we are the defence, and we've been working so hard, and I'm just _so _tired, and…" Trucy blinked her big blue eyes in such a way that would draw sympathy from a man-eating shark.

"The victim? Nah, sorry, pal, no new info there." The Chief sighed deeply. "What we thought was our only lead turned out to be a dead end. The address of some orphanage was found in the victim's pocket, y'see. We thought the people who worked there might be able to identify her; but no such luck. I guess now we've only got one option left… I hate to do it, but it's the only way…"

Trucy leaned into Apollo, and, covering her mouth with her gloved hand, whispered "Is he allowed to tell us this?"

The Chief seemed to have a very acute sense on hearing.

"Waaaugh!" He cried. "You're right! I shouldn't be telling you this! Oh, man, what am I gonna do?! I can't lose this job! Do you have any idea how long it took me to work my way up here? Well, DO YOU?!" The Chief spin around on his office chair, wiling insanely.

"I tried so hard! Never to make a single mistake!" He sobbed. "And now look what's happened!" Leaping out of his spinning chair and stopping to regain his balance, he banged his fists on his desk so that the computer monitor rocked alarmingly. "You two!" He hollered.

"Y-Yes?" Trucy squeaked.

"Promise me you're not gonna tell anyone about this! PROMISE ME!" The Chief begged. "You can't say a word, or else!"

Apollo and Trucy sweat-dropped. The whole fearsome, serious Chief façade had crumbled away completely before their eyes, leaving this lost little puppy in it's place.

"O… Ok, sir, we promise we won't tell…" Trucy said. A devilish smile graced her lips. "_If _you'll tell us the progress report on Detective Skye!"

"Detective Skye…?" Gumshoe's face blanked. "Oh, you mean Ema! Yeah, she called in sick today. Sounded like it was killing her to do it, too. She's keeping in touch with us through email at the moment."

"I see… Can we send her a message?" Trucy asked innocently, nodding at the Chief's computer.

"Sure, why no- Hey! You're doing this on purpose!" Gumshoe shouted accusingly at Trucy. "You can't use a police computer for social networking! You'll have to phone her."

Trucy sighed. "Fine. What's her number?"

"Oh, it's- Hey! That's classified information, pal! I can't give away the home number of a police detective!" Gumshoe cried, glaring at Trucy as if his incompetence was her fault.

"Oh, for God's sake, Chief, just give them the number!" A police officer who was sat at the desk nearest to Gumshoe's suddenly blurted out, slamming his hand on the keyboard, causing an array of random letter to splash out over the essay he was writing. He had obviously heard the whole conversation, and was getting sick of the whole matter.

"O-Oh! Yes, sir, right away, sir!" Gumshoe cried, saluting. He began to shuffled through his papers, looking for the list of the phone numbers of everyone in criminal affairs, when he stopped. "Hey, you!" He yelled, pointing at the officer. "HOLD IT! OBJECTION! You can't order me around! _I'm your _boss, not the other way around!"

The officer sighed, turning back to his computer. "Sorry, Chief."

"Yeah, you'd better be!" Gumshoe huffed proudly. "Where were we?" He asked, turning back to Apollo and Trucy. "Oh, right, the number. It's- have you got your phone ready?- zero, one, seven…"

Trucy beamed triumphantly as she entered Ema's phone number into her cell phone. Chief Gumshoe seemed to have forgotten all about it being classified information.

"It's ringing," She declared. Then she tossed the phone into Apollo's hands.

"Ack!" Apollo fumbled, almost dropping it. "Hey, why me?!"

"Come on, Polly, chop chop!" Trucy clapped her hands impatiently. "She might answer!"

As if she had jinxed it, Apollo suddenly heard Ema's impatient voice ringing out from the phone he held at arm's length.

"Hello? Hello? Is anyone there? I swear, if this is some punk playing jokes, I'll-"

"Ema!" Apollo said a little too cheerily, quickly raising the phone to his ear. "I-It's Apollo, um, Justice…"

"I know who you are, dummy." Ema's voice could be heard sighing from down the other end of the phone line.

"Yeah, ha ha ha…" Apollo scratched the back of his neck with his free hand.

"Why is he stuttering?" Gumshoe whispered to Trucy.

"Ehh, Polly's just shy." Trucy whispered back.

Apollo glowered. "I heard that." He called over to them.

"Heard what?" Ema asked.

"Ack! N-Nothing!" Apollo cried hurriedly. "I, uh, just called to see- well, actually, Trucy called, and then forced me to talk to you- n-not that I don't want to talk to you! I-I'ts just it's kinda hard to think up what you're going to say to someone on such short notice, and-"

"Apollo, what do you want?" Ema groaned impatiently.

"Oh, me and Trucy were wondering if you had any new information on the victim… and…" Apollo lowered his voice. "We also called to see of you were ok." Maybe he lowered his voice a little too much, because Ema didn't seem to have heard him at all.

"The victim? Well, don't tell anyone, but we're putting up pictures of the victim on a late-night news-special. You know, see if anyone recognises her. It's not exactly conventional protocol, but right now, it's our only option." Apollo could hear the disappointment in Ema's voice.

"Ema… Are you ok?" He asked worriedly.

"Yeah… I just hate to miss a day of work… Usually I wouldn't mind, but this is a huge case, Apollo. Huge! It'd make my career if I could crack it. Maybe I could finally get into forensics…" Ema sighed sadly. "But with being cooped up in my apartment, I'm missing out on vital work! I mean, what if they solve the case without me? They can't do that, not after all my hard work!"

"So… You're still ill then?" Apollo asked.

"I wasn't feeling too good earlier, but luckily I'm fine now. Hopefully I'll be back to testify the day after tomorrow!" Ema said, cheering up a little.

The trial! Apollo had forgotten all about it. Talk about bad timing!

"Good." Apollo managed to force out, despite his initial shock. "And, Ema? Sorry… You know, about yesterday."

"It's ok." Ema said. Apollo almost choked on air- surely he hadn't heard that? "You and Trucy were just doing what you thought was best. Even if you did mess it all up…" Ema went on. "I was thinking about it… You two did all you could for me, and I just yelled at you. So… _I'm_ sorry, ok?"

"Uh…" Apollo was momentarily shocked into silence. Was Ema actually admitting she was wrong? It was probably just the fever talking. "Th-That's ok…"

"Really. I mean it." Ema said. Apollo could tell she was smiling now. "I'll… see you later, Apollo."

"Uh…" Apollo swallowed. He could feel the heat rising in his cheeks. "R-Right, bye Ema!" He blurted, quickly pressing the 'End Call' button. "Here." He said, holding the small purple phone out to Trucy.

"What happened Apollo?" Trucy asked, snatching the phone from his open palm. "What did she say?"

"Nothing," Apollo said, holding his head up high and raising his voice to try to cover up his embarrassment.

"Hee hee!" Trucy giggled, bouncing giddily around him. "You've gone bright red! What did she _say_, Polly? Tell meeee!" She mock whined, putting on her best puppy dog look.

"Shut up."

--

The following afternoon, the Wright Anything Agency received a phone call. The caller was a rather excited Ema Skye (with Gumshoe whooping in the background), ordering Trucy and Apollo to get to the precinct that instant. It seemed that they had received some rather pleasing news.

Half and hour later, the two of them arrived, out of breath, at Criminal Affairs.

"You wanted to see us?" Apollo gasped. He and Trucy had had to run the final five-minute stretch to the precinct after their taxi got caught up in a traffic jam- from Ema's voice, it sounded as if someone had been murdered, and they didn't have time to wait!

"We've found someone who knows who the victim is." Ema blurted.

"Wh-What? Where are they?" Apollo asked.

"Well, they're filling in her personal details right now, but they should be finished any minute now." Ema answered.

"Who is this person, Detective?" Trucy questioned. "And how does she know the victim?"

"An old friend, apparently." Ema answered. "Says her name's Anne. Anne Darwood."

There was a knock at the door.

"Her identity has been verified and registered, Detective Skye." The lower-ranking officer said. "Shall I bring her in?"

"Yes, if you would." Ema said, rubbing her hands together in anticipation.

The officer nodded, and retreated back into the room for a moment. When he came back, a young woman was with him.

She was very small- not only short, but stick thin too. She had glossy black hair twisted up into a messy bun behind her head, and her skin was a pale yellowish-brown- she seemed to be either Chinese or Japanese. Though her body was thin, she had a certain plumpness to her face and a wide nose which made her dark brown eyes seem a little too small for her. She was dressed plainly, but ready for business- her white blouse was buttoned up right to the top, and her short, dark blue pencil skirt was spotless, with not a fleck of dust to be seen.

"You are…"

"Anne Darwood. Yes." Said the woman shyly. She searched through her purse for her drivers license and showed it to them.

"And you are how old?" Ema went on, flipping open her notebook.

"Twenty-eight." Anne answered.

"I see…" Ema scribbled something down on her pad. Then she looked back up at Anne. "And you know our victim how?"

"Well, I _think _I know her. The pictures I saw over the news weren't exactly of the finest quality…" Anne said unsurely, fidgeting.

Ema flushed. "Well… If you would come with me, Ms Darwood, we shall see if you can identify the body." She said primly, turning on her heel and march off towards the forensics lab. "Follow me, please." She said without turning her head.

Trucy nudged Apollo with her elbow. "Polly, come on!" She urged, dragging him after Ema and Ms Darwood.

"T-Trucy! I don't think we're allowed to…" Apollo began to protest.

"Oh, don't be such a wuss, Polly! C'mon, it'll be fun!" Trucy insisted.

"How will looking at a dead body be fun?"

Trucy rolled her eyes and scowled.

"Here we are." Ema announced as they reach a large wooden door at the right side of the corridor. She inserted the key into the lock and turned. There was a click, and the door swung open. She, Trucy, Apollo and Anne went inside.

The room beyond the door was very small and cramped, and almost completely bare save for a huge window that allowed viewing into the room next to it, although nothing could be seen from it at the moment, as the room beyond was completely blacked out.

"Now, I must tell you, as this is a woman you know, this may come as a bit of a shock." Ema warned. "Are you ready for us to turn the lights on?"

Ms Darwood took a deep breath, raising her tiny hand to her chest. She closed her eyes, apparently steeling herself. Then she nodded. "I'm ready."

Ema clicked a switch on the wall, and the lights in the room through the window flickered on.

The room that could be seen through the window was completely white. Spookily so. In the centre of the white abyss was a large slab, also white. Atop the slab lay the body of a woman, about thirty or so years old.

Apollo did a double take. Trucy had stopped smiling. Even Ema couldn't quite bring herself to look directly at the woman before them.

People say that when people die, they look just like they're sleeping. That's a lie. The body before them was cold and clearly dead, just an empty shell. Her dirty blonde hair spilled out over the end of the table behind her. It was still stained with blood. Her skin was deathly pale, and had taken on a dead, yellowish hue. Her mouth hung slightly open, her lips faded and dry. Her eyelids were still open, her eyes misted and glassy, like those of a deceased animal. A white sheet had been pulled up to her waist, and her body was naked underneath, they thick stitches from the autopsy clearly visible on her bare chest.

Anne had started breathing very hard. She held her hand up to her chest, forcing herself to look away from the body. Apollo put his hand on her shoulder.

"Are you ok?"

"Y… Yes, I…" Anne rasped. "I… Oh, God…"

"I take it you know this woman." Ema said, switching the lights back off.

"She's… Her names Faye Key. She was… my friend…" Anne gasped, turning away from the window, though Faye's body could no longer be seen through it. "I… I haven't seen her in… twelve years… She… She left to live in Europe. I was… her best friend…" Anne's business-like demeanour had vanished, and she began to sob softly.

"Miss Darwood…" Trucy put her hand on her shoulder comfortingly.

"You say you haven't seen her in twelve years? How old were you when you last saw her?" Ema asked. She'd learned long ago to never let the tears of another get to her. You had to have a thick skin when you'd been through what she had in her lifetime. A very thick skin.

"I was… Sixteen, I think. She was eighteen… So that would make her thirty now." Anne answered shakily. "She… she hasn't changed… at all…"

"Has Faye any family that we need to inform of her death?" Ema asked, flipping open her notebook again.

"N…No. She… Her parents died when she was seventeen… She took care of herself." Anne said. "…But…" Anne trailed off, uncertain.

"But? What?" Ema urged.

"Well, she _did _have a boyfriend." Anne said. "His name was Bernie. Bernie Ford. I could… give you his address, if you want. Though I don't know if he'll still live there… It's been a while since I saw him last."

"If you would, Ms Darwood, it would be very helpful." Ema said, clicking her pen.

"Well, ok. The estate was the Mercury estate a few miles from here, and the apartment block was block number four. His room number was… um… number twelve, I think." Anne said uncertainly as Ema wrote down the address.

"Thank you, Ms Darwood. You've been very helpful." Ema said. Then, opening the door of the room, she shouted down the corridor to the police officer from before. "Joey? Could you show Ms Darwood out, please?"

The officer came along and took the sniffing Anne away.

Then Ema thrust the notepad with Bernie Ford's address on it into Apollo chest.

"I'm going to do a background check on Faye Key." She announced. "I'll leave it to you kids to go meet up with Bernie and break the news to him."

"W-Wait!" Apollo cried in protest. "Why do _we_ have to-? A-Are we even_ allowed _to do that? Why don't you do your own dirty work?!" He spluttered ineffectively.

Ema raised her eyebrows. "Apollo, you can either: go and meet Bernie whilst I handle the background checks, or _I _can go and meet Bernie while _you _stay here and deal with all these scary computers. Now, what do you want to do?"

Apollo muttered something incoherently under his breath, before turning to Trucy and saying 'We'd better go, then…"

Ema smirked as Apollo and Trucy walked away. Sometimes, it was just too easy…

--

**A very text based chapter, I know. Sorry if it seems a little rushed- I've broken my right hand so it's kinda hard for me to type!**

**Reviews? Did you like it? Did you hate it? Do you have any constructive criticism or ideas for further chapters?**


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